======VPS :: Virtual Private Server======
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	<input type="hidden" name="cx" value="011485844201494682042:aym4yhntik8" />
	<input type="hidden" name="cof" value="FORID:1" />
	<input name="q" type="text" size="40" />
	<input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search" />
	<img src="http://google.com/coop/images/google_custom_search_smnar.gif" alt="Google Custom Search" />
  </form>
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I finally reached a point where it became more economical to lease my own Virtual Private Server than the several shared hosting plans for which I was signed up.  When I signed up for my first VPS, I had a little experience with Linux, but not enough to confidently fully administer my own production server.  So I started searching and researching.  This page organizes what I have learned and offers a resource for other new Linux VPS administrators.

Host: John Companies (johncompanies.com)
VPS OS: Ubuntu
My Local OS: Windows XP

===Key Steps===
[[VpsStep1 Getting Started]]
Security and the Firewall
Running Apache

===Google Custom Search Engine===
Around the same time I got my VPS, I discovered Google Co-op, a custom search engine portal, and created [[http://google.com/coop/cse?cx=011485844201494682042%3Aaym4yhntik8 my own search engine]] for this topic.  This seems useful for a topic like Linux, where there is a lot of conflicting information, much of which is noise that takes the form of outdated or incomplete information (e.g. mailing list archives, which seem to rank high in a lot of general searches.)  I am still adding to the url list.  And you can, too.  Try it out below:

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	<input type="hidden" name="cx" value="011485844201494682042:aym4yhntik8" />
	<input type="hidden" name="cof" value="FORID:1" />
	<input name="q" type="text" size="40" />
	<input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search" />
	<img src="http://google.com/coop/images/google_custom_search_smnar.gif" alt="Google Custom Search" />
  </form>
<!-- Google CSE Search Box Ends -->""